Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Matthew 22

What does it say?
Jesus told a parable about a kings wedding feast. The first group that was invited to the wedding feast refused to come. In fact, they abused the servants that came to them; therefore, the king sent his army to destroy their city. Then the king sent out his servants to gather people from everywhere. On the day of the feast, there was a man not dressed in wedding clothes; therefore, the king had him thrown out into the outer darkness, were there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. Jesus concluded by saying, “For many are called, but few are chosen.  The Pharisees sent their disciples and the Herodians to Jesus, to try and trick him, so that they might accuse him of insurrection, but Jesus said, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and render to God the things that are God’s.” The Sadducees thought that they could stump Jesus about the resurrection using human logic but Jesus answered with Scripture alone; therefore, confounding their understanding. A lawyer asked Jesus which is the great commandment in the Law? Jesus answered that the greatest commandment is to love God with your entire being and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself. He said that the entire law depends on these two commandments. Lastly, Jesus questioned the Pharisees about there understanding about the Christ. They answered the son of David, but Jesus showed them from Psalm 110:1 that the Christ is David’s Lord. 

What  does it mean?
Jesus is the wisdom of God in human flesh. The chapter begins with a parable about a wedding feast but is actually the third parable that Jesus gave after the chief priests and the pharisees challenged his authority to be teaching in the temple. All three of these parables paint them as false teachers. The wedding feast is the end of time. The invitation is the gospel proclamation and the wedding clothes are the righteousness of Jesus Christ. All of the questioning of Jesus that follows these parables is the chief priests and Pharisees attempts to out wit Jesus, but you cannot out wit the wisdom of God. The final question given to Jesus is the best of all because his answer sums up all of Scripture. Covenantal theologians call the ten commandments the moral law, and say that it is the law written on our hearts from the dawn of creation. However, Jesus shows us in this passage that the ten commandments are dependent on the law of love: the love of God and the love of neighbor. This is the law written on the heart. This chapter concludes with Jesus correcting the Pharisees understanding of the Christ. The Christ is greater than David.

What shall I do?
I shall not question the wisdom of God. Human wisdom is carinate; therefore, it does not work when thinking about the things of God. I shall trust in the wisdom of God and not the wisdom of man. I shall repent of my sins and put my faith in Jesus Christ. Trusting his righteousness to save me on the day of judgement. I shall love God (Father and Son and Holy Spirit) with everything that I have and love my neighbor as myself.